Crisis Text Line Releases New State-by-State Data Report on Mental Health in America

NEW YORK, Feb. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Crisis Text Line, a not-for-profit organization that provides free, 24/7 confidential crisis counseling via text, today released its first-ever national report identifying the underlying reasons people in the United States are in crisis. The report, "Everybody Hurts: The State of Mental Health in America," draws on data from more than 129 million messages across 50 states since Crisis Text Line's launch in 2013. 

"There's a lot of pain in America, but there are more ways than ever to get support when you need it," said Nancy Lublin, co-founder and CEO of Crisis Text Line. "We released this report because knowing why people ask for help is critical to reaching them before they are in crisis."

Last month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released 2018 mortality data which includes suicide and drug overdoses. The Everybody Hurts report complements those findings by identifying the key issues that prompt people to reach out for support, as well as the language they use.

"Since day one, Crisis Text Line has implemented data science to analyze the information exchanged in our messages to understand and ultimately prevent crises," said Bob Filbin, Crisis Text Line co-founder and chief data scientist. "This report offers new insights that we hope will help the broader community tackle crises among a population that is often younger, poorer, and more diverse than average."

The report dives into mental health trends both nationally and by state. Insights include:

• There's a gap to fill. For 37% of texters, Crisis Text Line was the first time they'd ever reached out for support. And, 68% of texters say they have shared something with a crisis counselor that they have never shared with another human being. Crisis counseling via text is filling a gap in the mental health care system.
• Emojis mean danger. Crisis Text Line uses AI to triage texts so it can support people at risk for suicide within seconds. Through machine learning, Crisis Text Line found that when a texter uses the words "acetaminophen," "Ibuprofens" and "800mg," the conversation is more likely to end with our counselors dialing 911 to get emergency medical help to a texter. The data also show that the emoji pill is 4.4 times more likely and the crying face emoji is 1.4 times more likely to end in a life-threatening situation.
• Mental health trends are regional. People in the West (Montana, Wyoming, Utah) send more texts than average about suicide, while people in the South (Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi) send more texts about depression. People on the coasts send more texts about anxiety.
• The big issues are shared regardless of geography. The issues that most often lead people to reach out for crisis counseling are depression, relationships, anxiety and suicide.

The full report is available at www.crisistextline.org/states.

Text CRISIS to 741741 24 hours a day, seven days a week to be connected to a live, trained crisis counselor.

About Crisis Text Line: Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7, confidential support for people in crisis via text. www.crisistextline.org. Text CRISIS to 741741 to be connected to a live, trained Crisis Counselor. Crisis Counselors complete a 30-hour training and have 24/7 supervision by full-time Crisis Text Line mental health professionals. 

Contact(s):
Elly Spinweber Burke
[email protected]

Ashley Womble
[email protected]

SOURCE Crisis Text Line

Related Links

http://www.crisistextline.org